Chembur resident stabbed after row over plucking mangoes

A man was assaulted and stabbed by a group of eight to 10 people after he tried to stop one of them from plucking mangoes from a tree near his building in Mumbai. Stones thrown to bring the fruit down often shattered window panes of his house. Two of the attackers have been arrested. The police have registered a case for attempt to murder and rioting.

MUMBAI: A group of eight to 10 people allegedly assaulted and stabbed a 38-year-old man after he tried to stop one of them from plucking mangoes from a tree near his building as stones thrown to bring the fruit down often ended up shattering window panes of his house, according to Tilak Nagar police.

HT Image

The victim, Darahan Tawate, 38, who works as a hotel manager in BKC, was rushed to Rajawadi Hospital in Ghtakopar where he is said to be out of danger. Two people from the group of assaulters have been arrested.

Though the accused left the place after Tawate asked him to stop throwing stones, he returned with a group of eight to 10 people, armed with knives, and assaulted Tawate when he had stepped out of the building.

The police have registered a case for attempt to murder and rioting under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the accused. The two arrested are Parvez Abdul Samad, 22, and Aziz Abul Salam, 20.

A police officer said the others accused in the case are minors and therefore, they were not arrested immediately. Parvez has a record of assault and robbery cases registered against him in Tilak Nagar police station, said Hemraj Rajput, deputy commissioner of police.

According to the police, the complainant, Tawate, works as a hotel manager in BKC and lives in B wing of Jai Indrani building in Chheda Nagar, Chembur West, along with his 69-year-old mother. There are many coconut and mango trees in the compound and youngsters from nearby Nagewadi slum pocket often try to steal fruits from these trees.

In his statement to the police, the complainant said sometimes the stones ended up breaking window panes of his house. Also, many drug addicts hover around the premises and when residents object, they start fighting.

Elaborating on the incident, Tawate said that on Sunday afternoon, Parvez came to their building with his associates and started throwing stones at the mango trees. Tawate, who was playing cricket in the compound, objected to it and Parvez abused and threatened him and left the place, said a senior inspector Sunil Kale of Tilak Nagar police station.

After an hour, the complainant along with his building watchman and one more friend went outside the building to have tea. Parvez, along with eight others, attacked him there.

The shopkeepers tried to intervene but Parvez took out a knife and threatened them forcing them to back off. He then stabbed Tawate and fled, added Kale.